Fortnum & Mason’s Post

🎄The Christmas party countdown is on🎄 I’ve been there… Juggling an ice machine that seems to produce 1kg ice per day (😱), folding 100’s of napkins, polishing 1000’s of forks a week, a team that consists of casuals or agency team members who feel like they lay tables slower than a 🐌 , driving average spend up via that extra shot, beer, or bottle of wine (whilst of course making sure we don’t break The Licencing Act!), keeping the energy up, AND making sure every guest leaves with a smile… 😮💨 Christmas party season in hospitality is intense, but with the right prep, it can be a huge success. And a LOT of fun too! I’m excited to share more details about my upcoming workshop, Leading The Ultimate Party Night, designed specifically for your HODs, Assistant HODs, and Supervisors. This is all about setting your team up to shine during the busiest time of the year! Here’s an outline of the topics we’ll cover: 🪄 Essential ops top tips for Christmas party nights 📋 Anticipating and mitigating common challenges 👏 Crafting engaging, inspiring briefings 💨 Delivering fast, efficient service with Christmas spirit 🧘♀️Handling difficult guests with professionalism 💷 Upselling stategies for maximum impact 🥳 Recognition and rewards: Keeping morale high during the festive season ❤️🩹 Supporting team member wellbeing throughout the festive rush If you're looking to ensure your team is ready to deliver The Ultimate Festive experience, this workshop is for you. 🫵 Available throughout November, it’s the perfect way to prepare your team to handle the holiday hustle like the pros they are! More details coming soon! Stay tuned! 👀 #ChristmasPartyNights #HospitalityLeadership #FoodAndBeverage #GuestExperience #TeamTraining #HospitalityExcellence

Here’s some info on the new workshop!! Check it out!

🎃 Trick or Treats for Hospitality This Halloween? 🏨✨ While witches and wizards are prepping their cauldrons tonight, hospitality businesses have reasons to celebrate beyond the spooky season. Yesterday's budget brought some frightfully good news! 🧙♂️ Highlights that light up our lanterns: 1️⃣ Business Rates Relief Continues 🏰 The extension of business rates relief for retail, hospitality, and leisure means we can keep our doors open wider than a haunted house's creaky entrance! 2️⃣ Draft Alcohol Duty Cut 🍻 Cheers to lower duties on draft beverages! This means more affordable pints for customers and a boost for pubs brewing community spirit. 3️⃣ Employment Allowance Increase 💷 With the Employment Allowance rising from £5,000 to £10,500, small businesses can lighten the load on National Insurance contributions—more funds for creating enchanting experiences! They say the hospitality industry is about creating magic ✨, and with these budget treats, we're all set to cast even more delightful spells on our guests. 🤔 In the spirit of turning challenges into opportunities, how can we use these budget boosts to make our businesses even more spellbinding for our guests? Wishing everyone a bewitching Halloween and prosperous times ahead! 🧡🖤 #HospitalityHeroes #Halloween2024 #BudgetBoost #UKHospitality #BusinessGrowth

Less than 190 days.... Best start get organised...

🎄Did you know? Santa is 1,753 years old!🎄 📣 Announcing the season hospitality hates to love. We plan for a year, and it’s over in a flash! I bet you’ve been busy selling, but how much thought have your Ops leaders put into party night service? Are your leaders setup for success? Are your Team Members going to be ready? I’ve worked in hospitality since I was 15, and have served or managed WELL over 100 Christmas parties 🎉. Then add the weddings and events. 💪🏼 I know what the a great party/event looks like in a hotel. 💪🏼 I know how to run a strong team briefing. 💪🏼 I know how to get a F&B operation organised. 💪🏼 I know how to get an event space setup EFFICIENTLY so you can get 100s of guests in and out without a hitch. Introducing 🥁 Leading The Ultimate Party Night 🤩 A highly engaging, convenient, virtual workshop for your HODs, Assistant HODs, and Supervisors! This is all about setting your team up to shine (and drive revenue 💷!) during the busiest time of the year! Here’s an outline of the topics we’ll cover: 👏 Crafting engaging, inspiring briefings 📋 Anticipating and mitigating common challenges 💷 Upselling stategies for maximum impact 💨 Delivering fast, efficient service with Christmas spirit 🧘 Handling difficult guests with professionalism 🥳 Recognition and rewards: Keeping morale high during the festive season ❤️ Supporting team member wellbeing throughout the festive rush 🪄 Essential ops top tips for Christmas party nights If you're looking to ensure your team is ready to deliver The Ultimate Festive experience, this workshop is for you. 🫵 Tune in tomorrow for dates and details! #ChristmasPartyNights #Hospitality #FoodAndBeverage #GuestService #Banqueting #Christmas

Our favorite place in the house is the dining room! This is where my family and friends love to gather. No, not the living room, not the music room, but the dining room is where we truly connect with each other and make our best memories! - We love to EAT!  Happy or sad, it is something that we love to do. When one has stories about work or there is an important news, this is where it is shared over a good meal, a cup of coffee or tea or a glass of wine. - We love to CELEBRATE!   The dining area is our focal point for celebrating special occasions such as birthdays, holidays, and anniversaries. During Christmas holidays, my friends would gather round the dining table and we'd have Irish coffee, ham, queso de bola and yes, lots of stories!  When my mom and her siblings would come to our home, they would gather round and share experiences. You could hear their loud laughter from far away! - UNPLUGging!   The dining room encourages us to disconnect from our cellphones and other devices and focus on each other for more meaningful conversations - FAMILY bonding! Despite busy schedules, we always make time to dine together and catch up on each other's lives. Asking "How are you?" or "How was your day?" sparks conversations that just flow - and everybody listens or gives support. So, what's your favorite place in the house? 🙂

The Christmas buzz starts early—did you know searches for “pretty Christmas restaurants” skyrocket by 492% from October to December? With competition heating up, it’s crucial to get ahead of the game and secure those early bookings. ✨ Want to know how? Download our FREE guide and learn the strategies to capture early festive bookings and maximise your revenue this holiday season. Don’t miss out on the chance to sleigh the season and fill your tables! https://ow.ly/MtaB50TjW2v #ServingHospitality #Hospitality #HospitalityTech #ChristmasInHospitality #HospitalityMarketing

We are sharing some further insights from our latest report focussing on those visiting hospitality brands for a festive celebration in 2023. In this snippet, we’ve highlighted some differences between the various attending groups. ✅Average food scores were 4.15 with work colleagues more satisfied with food, scoring over 4.5. ✅Service scores were solid over the festive period averaging an impressive 4.62. ✅Value remains front of mind for families with this cohort scoring lower than the average of 4.37. ✅The first two weeks of December were the busiest for work celebrations whilst the last week in November saw more friends getting together. Family celebrations were more prevalent once the school holidays began. For this and more, you can download the full report using the link below.   https://bit.ly/429xwsj Lisa Campbell, Paul Carrington, Sjoerd Geistdorfer, Emily Morgan, Julia Platia, Ben Kendall, Joe Cripps, Vicky Luke, Caroline Downing, Amy Woods, Zoe L. #nps #guestexperience #guestfeedback #hospitality #restaurants #guestexperiencemanagement #onlinereputation #surveymetrics #guestsurvey #customerexperience #hospitalityoperations #hospitalitytech

If your company has an event / summer do this year, it genuinely is the BEST time to book. We don’t run offers all year around. To be frank, we are too small of a business to do that. But in all honesty January is hard, so we put on CRACKING offers throughout the quiet months (to be blunt- to keep the deposits coming in, which is why the offer is so good). Offers like this keep us running happily all year round without putting stress on our cashflow. But it’s also, it means you get a freaking great deal. 25% off is probably the cheapest our catering will ever be (top tip #1 is that the offer is on all catering not just the BBQs… it just made a good ad) You do only have 6 days left though to enquire and get a deposit paid, and I don’t have many call slots left between now and then to deal with questions or changes to quotes so get it in now! It’s basically first come first serve. I’ll do my best as always and with Georgina joining us this week, I’m sure we will get through most of the enquiries. For context: BBQS start at 21.95 (less than £16.50 with discount!) Hot buffets start at 21.95 (less than £16.50 with discount!) Buffets start at 12.95 (under £9.75!) Canapés start at 9.95 (less than £7.50…) Three course meals start from £49.95 (under £38. What are we doing?!) Some customers have saved over £1500 this month. Minimum numbers of 35 for hot packages and 25 for cold packages apply Do or don’t, give it a share or send to a friend. This offer applies to weddings, parties, corporates etc. 0333 7722265 Www.bbqcaterer.co.uk

Is it too early to mention the C word?? Not according to the supermarkets, who have already started stocking various Christmas related products. In a small business you may want to start your own pre planning on some of the following: 1. Branded Christmas cards. Get them designed and printed so you are ready to go. Start putting together your list of who to send them to, with addresses. You can update/amend as the months go on. 2. Christmas party. Venues get booked up early, so if you have a specific venue in mind give them a call to check options, availability and prices so you can make a decision. 3. Staff Christmas gifts. Decide on your budget and start looking at options. Remember popular items can sell out so don't leave it till the last minute. 4. Opening hours. If you close or work on reduced hours over the Christmas period, think about how and when to communicate this to your clients/customers. 5. Ask your staff to let you know if they want time off over the festive period in good time. You may need to plan to ensure cover if you remain open. Anything else you do within your own business that we've not covered? And remember we can help with most of the above, so give us a call to discuss how we can support you. #Christmas #TooSoon